I've not said much lately. As the election nears and furor on both sides reaches it's crescendo I sit quietly, frustrated.

The debates were shit. I was beyond disappointed in the stump speeches everyone recited in leu of real honest-to-god political standpoints.

"Failed economic policies of the last 8 years." If I drank a thimble full of fucking-close-to-water American Beer every time I heard that line I'd have to be carted to the hospital for alcohol poisoning before any one of them ended. The truly sad element of it all is that Clinton led the deregulation charge for the banks back in the 90's.

What annoys me now more than anything is just how damn corrupt the American political system is. Unabashedly so. When I started studying American politics I couldn't understand why there were only two parties? It seemed like such a poor way of doing things to only offer two choices in something like running a country. However now I know better, there are not just two parties, there are not just two presidential candidates. Can you name them all?

I can. (But only with the assistance of Wikipedia.)

Democratic Party

Presidential Candidate: Barack Obama

Vice Presidential Candidate: Joe Biden

Republican Party

Presidential Candidate: John McCain

Vice Presidential Candidate: Sarah Palin

Constitution Party

Presidential Candidate: Chuck Baldwin

Vice Presidential Candidate: Darrell Castle

Libertarian Party

Presidential Candidate: Bob Barr

Vice Presidential Candidate: Wayne Allyn Root

Green Party

Presidential Candidate: Cynthia McKinney

Vice Presidential Candidate: Rosa Clemente

Reform Party

Presidential Candidate: Ted Weill (He will only appear on the ballot in Mississippi)

And then we have Ralph Nader running as an independent with Matt Gonzalez running as his VP.

I know what you're saying, you're all thinking 'silly Toe Knee and his pie eyed idealism… those aren't real Presidential Candidates, they're just zones on a ballot that exist for us not to use them, otherwise we could all vote by using the ballot as a dart board.'

That's the predominant opinion, that voting for another party is literally "throwing away your vote". And really I can't argue, because what's the point in voting for a person who 95% percent of the country likely doesn't know exists?

Why are the other candidates not invited to the presidential debates?

Because the GOP and the democrats PAY the media to hold the debates, and that payment guarantees exclusivity. There is nothing in the American Constitution about political parties. The founding fathers didn't want them. They wanted free-minded men and women to lead America.

With that sort of unobstructed corruption and bias in the federal election, the fundamental piece of American Democracy, is it any wonder why people don't have any faith in politicians?